


Mutuals

by ScarDolphin



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 16:41:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17186612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScarDolphin/pseuds/ScarDolphin
Summary: Sugawara has found his kouhai rather interesting, but is unsure of why his feelings towards Hinata are different than the rest. When Hinata gets hurt, Sugawara, who is worried and anxious, realizes just how much the younger boy means to him.





	Mutuals

Ever since he first laid his eyes on the younger student, Sugawara knew there was something special about him. Whether it was the bright orange hair that could be seen miles away, or the quirky yet determined personality he had, Sugawara didn’t know. Yet something fluttered inside him, a feeling he couldn’t recognize at first.

It was a normal day at practice. Or rather, after practice. Sugawara had finished changing and while waiting for Daichi, noticed that the lights were still on in the gymnasium. He walked over to the open door, spotting the two first years showing no signs of finishing up. There were balls laying around on one side of the net, and Sugawara watched them for a moment as they practiced their quick.  
“Kageyama, Hinata,” Sugawara called, “Don’t stay too late.”

Hinata, after spiking a ball, paused and looked towards Sugawara at the entrance.  
“We won’t,” Kageyama said, before Hinata had the chance to. Hinata’s eyes caught Sugawara’s for a moment, and he quickly looked away.  
“Oi Hinata, why are you standing there? Let’s go a few more times,” Kageyama spoke to his teammate.  
“Right!” The moment was forgotten and Hinata threw a ball in the air to Kageyama, who set the toss for him.

Sugawara watched them for a moment, before turning around to look for Daichi. Daichi came out of the club room with his bag over his shoulder.  
“Are they still practicing?” Daichi asked Sugawara, looking past him to the light in the gymnasium.  
“Yeah,” Sugawara nodded. “I did tell them not to stay too late.”  
“Then, let’s go,” Daichi replied. “Those idiots won’t stop, even if we tell them to.”  
The two of them began walking towards the gate. They went home together most of the way. It was a routine, something they had done since they found out they lived close to each other. Which wasn’t long after starting high school, for both of them clicked as first years. Since then, they walked to and from school together whenever they could.  
“Coach suggested we hold a small training camp this weekend,” Daichi spoke, “He told me to think about it after practice.”  
“Oh?” Sugawara raised an eyebrow, “Why’s that?”  
“To practice even harder,” Daichi replied, “Even though we won in our prefecture, it’s nothing compared to nationals. Although they’ve been getting better, the first years still need to practice more receiving. And we can’t let winning get to their heads.”  
Sugawara nodded, “That sounds like a plan. Have you heard anything from Nekoma?”  
“They’re playing in the finals this weekend,” Daichi replied, “We’ll find out where they stand after that.”

Sugawara and Daichi went their separate ways at a crossroad a little while later, with the promise to meet again the next morning and walk to school together. Sugawara was tired when he got home; practice had been tough. And he had quite a lot of homework to get done. Aside from eating dinner, Sugawara concentrated on his homework until he had to go to bed. Laying in his bed, he sent a quick text.

Goodnight, Hinata. Sleep well

A moment later he got a reply.

Goodnight, Sugawara-senpai

Sugawara had had to tell Hinata several times that he wasn’t too fussed about being called Senpai, yet the younger boy called him that anyways. After one night when Sugawara had been texting Hinata, this had become a tradition. Sugawara got worried if Hinata didn’t reply almost straight away. It was the same time every night, both weekends and weekdays. Sugawara smiled to himself as he put his phone down on the table next to his bed, before drifting off to sleep.

 

At practice the next afternoon, Coach Ukai called the members of the volleyball club to a quick meeting before practice ended.  
“Alright, listen up! We’ll be holding a small training camp this weekend from morning to night, so be prepared!”  
Sugawara already knew this, and watched as excited looks appeared on the first- and second years faces.  
“First years, you’ve gotten a lot better, but your receiving still sucks. You’ll be practicing receives during the training camp. Nishinoya, you need to practice setting. Although you’ve gotten good at it quickly, the ball still ends up landing too far away from the spiker too often. Some of you need to practice blocking as well. Make sure to get your parents acceptance for the weekend!” With that speech, Coach Ukai sent the club home.

After changing out of their volleyball clothes, the group of students headed down the road together. It was still dark by the time they finished practice. Sugawara was caught up talking with Asahi and Daichi, but he wasn’t really listening to what was being said, except to nod once in a while. He was watching the others, his eye particularly on a certain boy.  
“Hey Suga, are you even listening?” Daichi asked, skeptical.  
Sugawara jumped and turned his head around, “What did you say?”  
Daichi sighed and looked at Asahi, “I told you.”  
Asahi nodded, “Love is tough.”  
“Why are we talking about love?” Sugawara asked, puzzled.  
Asahi and Daichi shared a look “It’s quite obvious with the way you act.”  
“Hinata, right?” Daichi asked, before adding, “I ship it, though.”  
“Oh, would you two stop?” Sugawara huffed, although he didn’t have it in him to be really angry at them.  
“Let’s buy some buns before we go home. My treat,” Daichi offered.  
The first years, who had heard him, whipped their heads around.  
“Thank you, Daichi!” Hinata exclaimed.

They stopped outside of the shop where their coach also worked. Daichi headed inside whilst the rest waited outside patiently. A moment later he appeared with Coach Ukai behind him.  
“Don’t eat so much,” Ukai growled, “Go home and eat proper dinner instead.” He disappeared back into the shop.  
Daichi held up a few paper bags and grinned, resulting in a cheer from the rest of the team.  
“Thank you, Daichi!” Hinata said between bites.  
“Oi, let your senpais have first!” Tanaka growled at him, before grabbing a bun for himself.  
“It’s alright,” Sugawara gave a smile, “There’s enough for everyone.”  
“Here, Sugawara-senpai!” Hinata handed him a bag containing a bun.  
“I told you, stop calling me senpai,” Sugawara looked away to hide the fact that his cheeks were turning slightly red. “No need to use that formal stuff with me.”

 

The few days leading up to the training camp in the weekend passed quickly. Everyone got the permission from their parents and were allowed to spend the weekend devoted to volleyball. Sugawara had been looking forward to this weekend, where he could spend the most of his time in the gymnasium. He left the house early Saturday morning, the sun had not yet risen as Sugawara walked down the dimly lit road, wrapped in a large jacket that kept him warm. The moon shone brightly above him. The sky was clear, lit up by the thousands of stars that covered it.

“Good morning, Suga,” Sugawara’s thoughts were interrupted as he saw Daichi waiting on him.  
“Good morning,” Sugawara replied. “Shall we go?”  
Daichi nodded. Together, the pair headed down the path together towards the school.  
“If Asahi was here, he’d probably say something like this is going to be one of our last training camps or something else that sentimental, am I right?”  
Sugawara smiled at Daichi’s comment, “That’s true. And if we had the first years with us, Yamaguchi would be saying Tsukki every few minutes, and Hinata and Kageyama would’ve raced ahead.”  
“That’s probably true,” Daichi looked thoughtful for a moment. “They’re a handful, but they sure are a great bunch, aren’t they?”  
Sugawara had to agree with Daichi.

They arrived at the school and went to the club room to unlock the door. After changing into their training clothes, Sugawara and Daichi made their way down to the gymnasium, where they unlocked the door. It wasn’t long until the teammates came in, in small groups at a time. At 7am on the dot, Ukai appeared, stiffing a yawn, with Kageyama and Hinata right behind him, who were already out of breath it seemed.  
“Did you race here again?” Daichi asked.  
Hinata nodded, “I have thirty-four wins, thirty-five losses and one draw.”  
“And I have thirty-five wins, thirty-four losses and one draw,” Kageyama added.  
“Listen up! We have a lot of things to do today,” Coach Ukai broke the chatter and the team fell silent. “But first of all, go warm up.”  
“Yes Sir!” The team chorused, before beginning their warmup.

It wasn’t that long ago when the Coach had sat down with the team and focused on the best way for each of them to warm their bodies up. Some needed to focus on different muscles from others. Ukai watched as the team warmed up. He could see that they’d taken his words seriously, and were doing their best to follow the warmups he’d given them.

Afterwards the training began. The setters, Kageyama and Sugawara, were to set balls for the spikers. Hinata’s balls came from Sugawara, since Coach Ukai had told him to practice with someone other than Kageyama, who wouldn’t necessarily be able to spike the ball to him exactly where he wanted it. Nishinoya practiced receiving the balls that were spiked along with Daichi, who had volunteered to do so.

Next, they were practicing serves and receiving. When they had served, they were to go to the other side of the net and receive the ball that was served, passing it to where a setter would stand during a match. This was a challenging exercise for some. Hinata had great difficulty in receiving Asahi’s jump serve, but Daichi had an easy time receiving Tsukishima’s serve. Since Nishinoya wouldn’t have to serve, no matter the circumstances, Yamaguchi served twice so that Nishinoya had the chance to receive as well. Not that he particularly needed the practice, but he insisted on doing it anyway.

After a short break to get a drink, the training continued. And by noon, they were all exhausted. Kiyoko and Yachi, who had been elsewhere during the practice, had now appeared at the door.  
“There you are,” Ukai ushered them in. “They were down in my shop making lunch for everyone, so you better be grateful.”  
“Thank you!” The team chorused, bowing to their managers.  
The food was passed around and they all sat, chatting whilst eating the food that had been prepared for them.  
“What are we doing after lunch?” Hinata asked the coach, eagerly. Sugawara, curious, listened in as well.  
“We’ll play a practice match.”  
The statement from the coach was unexpected. Although it was technically possible, they only had 12 members. Would they be playing 6×6 against each other? Sugawara would have to wait until after the break to find out, for despite Hinata complaining, Coach Ukai didn’t say anything else about the activities for the afternoon.

Having eaten, it seemed like a new fire was burning under the members of the team as Coach told them to gather around. They did as they were told and stood, listening quietly as Ukai told them what they were going to do.  
“We’ll play a practice match with the members we’ve got, however, I’ll be mixing it around a little. I want Nishinoya and Kageyama to go to one side of the court and team up with Asahi, Tsukishima, Kinoshita and Narita. That leaves the other team with Hinata, Sugawara, Daichi, Yamaguchi, Tanaka and Ennoshita. The team with Kageyama will be the red team and the team with Sugawara will be the green team. I want you to take this as an opportunity to play with some other teammates than what you’re used to, and to play against those you normally play with.”  
“Yes Coach!” The team chanted.

The team separated and gathered on both sides of the net in their practice teams. Coach Ukai was the referee of the practice match. He blew the whistle to signal the start of the match. Yamaguchi was the starting server. He tossed the ball in the air, taking a few steps before jumping up into the air to join the ball. He threw his power into his arm, but hit the ball lightly so it swayed as it headed towards the net. The ball flew over the net and dropped almost instantly. Nishinoya dived for the ball and sent it back up.  
“Sorry, cover!”  
Kageyama repositioned himself to where the ball was and jumped, his form unreadable. He tossed the ball to Asahi, who spiked it down on the other side of the net, through Hinata and Tanaka’s block. The red team cheered at their winning play.  
“Nice try, Hinata, Tanaka,” Daichi called, “Let’s switch gears.”

The match continued, with the score progressing one at a time. When one team scored, the other team turned it around in the next play and scored. There was a one point difference during most of the match. When the score came to 24-24, there weren’t many plays left. It was the red team’s turn to serve. Except the team had rotated around to Kageyama serving, with Hinata on the receiving end. Next to Hinata was Yamaguchi, who didn’t have much better luck receiving than Hinata did. The ball came flying towards Hinata, who stepped forward and back a few times, unsure of the ball’s placement. The ball came closer, until he received it with his shoulder.  
“Cover!” he yelled.  
Sugawara, although he had noticed it before, realized just how far Hinata had come since he first arrived. Although he didn’t receive perfectly, no one could do that every time, he had managed to get the ball in the air using his shoulder.

Sugawara placed himself underneath the ball. Who should he send it to? Hinata looks like he is still recovering from the receive. Tanaka is on the left, but he has two blockers in front of him. Ennoshita only has one blocker, so perhaps it would be best to-  
“Toss it to me!” Hinata yelled, interrupting Sugawara’s thoughts. Sugawara glanced, surprised to see Hinata by Ennoshita’s side.  
“Hinata!” Sugawara called as he tossed the ball in the air. Hinata jumped. He looked like an angel in the second he was in the air. He spiked the ball as it hit down on the other side, watching Nishinoya dive for it, missing it by a few centimeters.

Hinata felt the joy of the ball smacking the floor on the other side as he landed on the ground. Feeling a sudden pain in his ankle, he lost his balance and fell to the floor.  
“Hinata!” Sugawara was the first to approach him. “Are you alright?” He asked, concerned.  
“Yeah,” Hinata looked up. The team as well as the coach were surrounding him. “I’ll be fine.”  
Daichi put his hand out and Hinata went to stand, only to feel the pain surge through his body. He shifted his weight over to the other leg in an attempt to hide it. If he could just bare the pain for one more point, they would win the set.

However, his act wasn’t very convincing.  
“Let me see your ankle,” Ukai said, crouching down to feel Hinata’s leg. Hinata attempted to keep a straight face, despite the pain.  
“It’s a bit swollen,” Ukai commented, “You should probably sit out for a while and put some ice on it.”  
“Should I take him to see a doctor?” Takeda asked, worried. He’d arrived sometime during their match and had been watching from the sidelines.  
“I’ll be fine!” Hinata blurted out, “I want to play.”  
“Can you walk?” Ukai asked, “If you can walk without even a slight limp, then I’ll let you continue this set.”  
Hinata nodded. He took the first step, carefully. The pain was almost unbearable. But he forced himself to take a few more steps. His ankle resisted, and Hinata found himself falling towards the ground once again. He closed his eyes to embrace the impact.

Except he didn’t hit the ground. Opening his eyes, he saw Sugawara had caught him.  
“You should sit out,” Sugawara said, concerned.  
“I agree. It seems much worse than I thought. Takeda, perhaps you and another student should take him to see a doctor.”  
Takeda nodded, “Who shall I take?”  
“Let me go,” Sugawara blurted, before calming himself. “Please.”  
Ukair raised an eyebrow, “We need you here at practice, Sugawara.”  
“Please,” Sugawara repeated, “Kageyama is still here, and I’m sure Nishinoya could step in as a setter.” Nishinoya looked pleased at the praise. Ukai looked down at his watch and sighed.  
“Alright,” Ukai agreed, reluctantly, “The rest of you can take a break. I invited the neighborhood team over for a practice match, so they’ll be here soon. Sugawara, take care of Hinata.”  
“I’ll go get the car,” Takeda said, going on ahead.

Sugawara put Hinata’s arm around his shoulder to steady him and help him get to the car.  
“I’ll be fine, Sugawara,” Hinata said.  
“Stop fussing,” Sugawara replied as they headed out of the gymnasium.

“Ah, youth,” Ukai sighed as he watched them leave the gymnasium.  
“It’s cute, right?” Daichi said, startling Ukai, who hadn’t seen him appear.  
“Well, I guess so,” Ukai replied, scratching his head.  
“Don’t worry, we’re all trying to get them together,” Daichi said.  
“We are?” Kageyama asked, tilting his head.  
“Kageyama, you idiot,” Tanaka told him, “Have you seriously not noticed it?”  
Kageyama frowned, “I mean, I do hear Hinata talk about Sugawara more than anyone else but-”  
“See? That’s what I mean,” Tanaka said.  
“I still don’t get it,” Kageyama turned his head.  
“They like each other,” Daichi told Kageyama bluntly.  
“Huh?!” Kageyama was surprised by the statement. He hadn’t seen it coming.  
“Well, I hope Hinata will be alright,” Yamaguchi said.  
“Of course he will be, idiot,” Tsukishima replied.  
“Sorry Tsukki.”

Sugawara helped Hinata out into the car, before he went around and sat on the other side.  
“How’s the pain?” Takeda asked.  
“It’s fine,” Hinata insisted, “It just hurts a bit when I walk.”  
“You probably shouldn’t push it, though,” Sugawara said.  
“I agree with Sugawara. Best to have the doctor check it just in case,” Takeda said from the front seat, as he drove down the road. The radio filled the silence in the car. It was just playing music, so it wasn’t particularly interesting. Sugawara looked out of the window at the buildings and such that they passed by.

The drive to the clinic took less than 10 minutes. When the car had stopped, Sugawara rushed out to the other side to help Hinata. They slowly made their way inside into the waiting room. Takeda talked with the receptionist for a few minutes, before joining Sugawara and Hinata, who were sat on a bench.  
“The doctor will call on us in a moment,” Takeda told them. He had barely sat down before a doctor appeared.  
“Hinata?”  
“That was quick,” Hinata said as he stood up. With help from Sugawara, they followed after the doctor, who entered a clinic room.

“Sit down,” The doctor told Hinata, who obeyed the command. “Is this another sports injury? What happened?”  
“We were playing volleyball,” Hinata started to explain, “After I had jumped to spike the ball, when I landed my ankle was like crack and pow and I fell to the floor.”  
“Right,” The doctor nodded.  
“Did you understand that?” Takeda asked, impressed.  
“Somewhat. If you’ll take your shoe and sock off, please, so I can have a look and feel it,” The doctor said.

After an examination and an x-ray, the doctor turned to face Hinata after studying the x-ray pictures for a few moments.  
“Nothing is broken, which is a good sign,” The doctor said, “It looks like you may have twisted your ankle whilst landing, and it has been tough on your ankle because of the weight. I’ll wrap it in a bandage and give you a set of crutches. The best thing you can do is to rest it. I would say you can go back to playing volleyball in three weeks, since you put a lot of strain on your ankles when spiking. You may go without crutches before, but if you feel any pain, then don’t put any weight on it. Give it plenty of rest. Icing it can also help keep the swelling down, so I recommend you do that when you get home.”  
“Thank you,” Takeda said.  
“No problem. If you have any problems with pain or the swelling not going down like it’s supposed to, don’t hesitate to give me a call,” The doctor replied.

Takeda, Sugawara and Hinata left the clinic. Hinata no longer needed Sugawara’s help, since he now had crutches.  
“How are you getting home?” Sugawara asked, well aware that Hinata cycled over the mountain every day, and was in no state to cycle home.  
“I called your mother,” Takeda told Hinata, “While you were getting x-rayed. I told her what happened and she told me to tell you to stay at a friend’s place and she’ll pick you up when she’s back from her trip. Just don’t forget to text her.”  
“Right,” Hinata nodded.  
“If you want to come home with me you can,” Sugawara suggested before he could stop himself. “I mean, it’s not too far away.”  
Idiot, he thought to himself, Why would Hinata want to spend the afternoon at his house?  
“Sure,” Hinata grinned, “Thanks, Sugawara.”  
“Where do you live, Sugawara? I can drop you two off on the way back to school,” Takeda said.  
“I need to get my things from school, so you can just drive straight there,” Sugawara replied, “Our house is close enough to walk there, so it’ll be fine.”  
“Daichi lives close to you, doesn’t he? I’ll tell him to bring your things,” Takeda insisted,”What’s your address?”

Sugawara told him the address and soon they were dropped off at Sugawara’s house. Takeda drove back to school, as Sugawara and Hinata headed inside.  
“Sorry, my parents aren’t home at the moment,” Sugawara gave Hinata a smile, “They went out with my siblings to a theme park.”  
“That sounds like fun!” Hinata replied enthusiastically.  
“Well, make yourself at home. Do you want anything to drink?” Sugawara asked.  
Hinata shook his head, “I’ll be fine, thank you.”  
“Alright. If you just head into the living room on the left, I’ll be there in a moment,” Sugawara replied. He went down to the end of the corridor and disappeared into the bathroom.

A moment later when he came back, Hinata was standing in the living room looking at the family pictures Sugawara’s mother insisted that they had standing on the shelves.  
“You were cute as a child, Sugawara,” Hinata told him.  
Sugawara, slightly embarrassed, let the comment disappear into thin air and changed the subject, “Do you need help to sit down?”  
Hinata nodded, sheepish.  
“Here, take my hand,” Sugawara offered. Hinata laid his crutches down on the floor and, using Sugawara to steady himself, he slowly hoisted himself down. Just before reaching the floor, he felt his good leg give under and he fell the last bit. However, the jerk down made Sugawara lose his balance, who came toppling down on top of him. Sugawara closed his eyes, but somehow managed to stop himself with his hand before he crashed down onto Hinata. He opened them to find Hinata’s face inches away from him. He quickly removed himself from the awkward position and sat next to him.  
“S-sorry,” Sugawara stuttered, looking down.  
“Don’t worry,” Hinata looked away.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. Sugawara was relieved to have an excuse to leave the awkward silence, even if it had only lasted a few seconds. Sugawara stood up and went outside to open the door. He found some of the team outside.  
“Hey, how’s the patient doing?” Daichi asked and gave Sugawara his back.  
Sugawara thanked him, “He’s sitting in the living room. Come in.”  
Sugawara gestured them inside. Nishinoya, Tanaka, Kageyama, Asahi and Daichi were the ones that had appeared, and they all took their shoes off as they entered the house and gathered in the living room.

Sugawara disappeared to the kitchen and came back a moment later with a jug of water and some glasses, which he set on the table.  
“If anyone wants some water you’re welcome to take it,” Sugawara said.  
“Thank you, Suga,” Daichi said, before turning to Hinata, “I heard you’re out of volleyball for three weeks.”  
Hinata nodded, “It sucks not being able to play.”  
“Well make sure you rest up, and if you feel like it then come to practice and watch. You’ll probably miss the first few matches at Nationals, but let’s make sure you can come back to us before the semifinals,” Daichi told him, “But don’t you start practicing when you’re still on crutches; you need to rest, or else you won’t play at Nationals at all.”  
Hinata huffed, “I’ll relax and get better soon, don’t worry.”  
“Good,” Daichi gave him a smile, before turning to look at Sugawara, “It looks like you don’t need any help. Shall we leave?”  
“No no, you’re welcome to stay for a while,” Sugawara insisted. 

An hour or so passed before Hinata’s mother came to pick him up.  
“Honestly,” his mother shook her head, “I’m just glad you’re alright, Hinata.”  
“I’m fine, mom,” Hinata insisted. Sugawara helped him get to his feet and lead him to the door.  
“Are you going to come to watch practice tomorrow?” Sugawara asked.  
“I’m not sure, only if I can get driven there,” Hinata replied.  
“I see,” Sugawara nodded, “Well, I’ll see you later, Hinata.”  
“See you,” Hinata waved before heading off after his mother who was waiting in the car. Sugawara watched the car drive off before shutting the door and entering again.  
“Well, I guess we should go,” Tanaka said, standing up.  
Nishinoya nodded, “I need to get home too.”  
The others proceeded to stand up and got ready to leave. Sugawara was about to go out and see them off when Daichi held him back.  
“Hey, Suga, did anything happen between you and Hinata?” Daichi asked.  
Sugawara shook his head.  
Daichi sighed, “If you don’t make your move soon we’ll graduate. Or Kageyama will take him.”  
“I know,” Sugawara said quickly, before sighing to calm himself down, “I’ll visit him tomorrow after practice if he doesn’t come.”  
“I’ll help you the best I can, but you have to be the one to do it or he’ll disappear right in front of you,” Daichi changed the subject, “See you tomorrow, Suga.”  
“Yeah,” Sugawara replied as he watched them leave. He closed the door, leaning up against it and letting out a sigh. He stayed there for a few seconds in silence, before heading to his room.

Hinata didn’t turn up at practice the next day. Although they were kept busy, Sugawara found himself missing the orange-haired boy who seemed to make everyone around him smile. The gymnasium somehow felt empty without him. Sugawara made up his mind to go see his kouhai after they finished practicing. They couldn’t play a full match. Since they only had twelve members, and with Hinata out of commission, it left a sore spot in the team. They played two on twos at the end, which was a lot more challenging, as they swapped partners after every match, to play with some they didn’t normally play with.

When practice was finally over and they had changed clothes, Sugawara and Daichi stood outside the gymnasium, talking as Daichi found the key to lock it.  
“Aren’t you going to visit Hinata?” Daichi asked.  
“I thought about it,” Sugawara admitted, “But it’s quite far away, and I wouldn’t know what to say.”  
“Just say I sent you to check on him to see how he’s doing,” Daichi replied.  
Sugawara thought about it for a moment, “It’s still quite far away. How Hinata cycles there and back every day I’ll never understand.”  
“Why don’t you asked Coach Ukai to give you a lift? Say you want to see how Hinata’s doing,” Daichi suggested.  
“That’s a good idea, he probably hasn’t left yet. Are you alright walking home by yourself?” Sugawara asked.  
“Of course. Off you go,” Daichi insisted.  
“See you tomorrow, Daichi!” Sugawara jogged off in hope of catching up before the coach left. 

He made his way round to the car park, where he spotted the coach getting into his car.  
“Coach Ukai!” Sugawara called, which made the coach turn his head as he sat in the car.  
Sugawara stopped and took a deep breath, calming himself down, before he spoke again, “Would you have time to drive me to Hinata’s place?”  
Ukai raised an eyebrow, “Why do you ask?”  
“Well, it’s quite far away,” Sugawara hesitated, “And I wanted to check on him to see how he’s doing.”  
“Alright,” Ukai nodded, “Jump in.”  
Sugawara was surprised at how easy the coach said yes. He scurried around to the other side of the car and got in the passenger seat. Ukai turned on the car and drove away from the school.  
“I can’t let you stay for long, if you want a lift back as well, that is,” Ukai said, “I need to get back and help out with the shop.”  
“That’s alright, thank you Coach Ukai,” Sugawara nodded. 

Ukai turned the radio on, and most of the journey to Hinata’s house was in silence, listening to the music the radio played in the background.  
“We’re here,” Ukai said, as he turned down a side road and stopped outside a house. Turning off the engine, Ukai stepped out the car and walked up to the door, Sugawara following behind him. Hinata’s mother opened the door.  
“Hello,” Ukai greeted, “I’m Ukai, the coach of the volleyball team. I came to check up on Hinata along with Sugawara, our vice-captain.”  
“Hello,” Sugawara smiled. He’d met her the day before and she seemed nice.  
Hinata’s mother nodded, “One moment.”  
She turned around called up the stairs that were visible, “Shoyo! You have visitors.”

A moment later Hinata come bundling down the stairs.  
“Hey, Coach Ukai, Sugawara, what brings you here?” Hinata asked.  
“I came to see how you were doing,” Ukai replied, “Takeda-sensei told me what the doctor said. I’m counting on you to rest and get better soon.”  
“Of course! I’ve stayed inside all day, which has been tough. I’ll get better soon!” Hinata replied eagerly.  
“Good,” Ukai grinned, before turning to Sugawara, “I’ll go wait in the car. Don’t take too long.”  
“Alright,” Sugawara nodded and watched Ukai walk down to the car, before turning back to Hinata, “So, how’s it going?”  
“It’s tough not being able to play volleyball,” Hinata admitted, “But I’ve been lying on my bed and throwing the ball to myself so I at least can touch the ball, even if I can’t jump around.”  
“That’s good,” Sugawara smiled, relieved, “Will you be coming to school tomorrow?”  
“Yeah, my mum’s driving me,” Hinata nodded, “She couldn’t drive me today so I couldn’t watch practice.”  
“That’s alright. We played a lot of 2-on-2s and practiced individually as well,” Sugawara replied.  
Hinata nodded, “I can watch tomorrow, though.”  
“Really? That’s good to hear,” Sugawara smiled as silence filled the air around them.  
“Well-”  
“I-”  
They both started talking at once before stopping.  
“You go first,” Sugawara said.  
“I was just going to say thanks for coming by, Sugawara,” Hinata grinned, “It’s boring being at home all day so I’m glad I got to see you.”  
“Yeah,” Sugawara glanced behind him, “I should probably go. Don’t want to keep Coach waiting.  
“Of course,” Hinata grinned, “See you tomorrow.”  
“Yeah, see you,” Sugawara lifted his hand as a gesture before turning around and heading to the car, not looking back until he sat in the passenger seat, where he saw the closed door of the house.  
“Let’s go back,” Ukai said. Sugawara nodded, not having anything else to say.

 

The next day, Sugawara bumped into Hinata during lunch break out in the yard.  
“Hey, Hinata,” Sugawara greeted.  
“Hey, Sugawara!” Hinata replied, “It’s so tough being on crutches, I hate it.”  
Sugawara smiled, sympathetically. “Where are you off to?”  
“Eat lunch with Kageyama,” Hinata replied, “That idiot ran off into the yard without me.”  
“I’m going the same way, I’ll walk with you,” Sugawara said.  
“Who are you meeting up with?”  
“I’m meeting up with Daichi.”  
They walked together slowly, Sugawara matching Hinata’s pace as he was slow on crutches. Kageyama and Daichi were both standing close by. Kageyama was tossing a volleyball and Daichi was talking with Asahi. Sugawara left Hinata and walked up to Daichi and Asahi.  
“Hey,” he greeted, before turning to glare at Daichi,” Why did you leave me in the classroom?”  
“I need to talk with Asahi,” Daichi said, “And besides, why don’t you go eat lunch with your boyfriend?”  
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Sugawara insisted.  
“Oh really? Would you mind if I asked him out?” Daichi asked.  
“No,” Sugawara glared, “Stay away from him.  
“I was kidding,” Daichi smiled, “Not about the lunch part, though. Kageyama’s ditched him now that he’s on crutches and can’t play volleyball.”  
Sugawara sighed and watched as Daichi and Asahi walked off. He sat down on a bench nearby and watched as Kageyama continued to toss the volleyball around, ignoring Hinata.

Hinata sighed and sat down next to Sugawara, “Shall we eat lunch together? Kageyama is being an ass.”  
Sugawara nodded, “Sure. Daichi and Asahi left as well.”  
They sat together on the bench eating their lunch and talking quietly about unimportant things from volleyball to family. Sugawara was enjoying getting to know Hinata better.

The bell rang too soon, signalling the end of break.  
Sugawara stood up, “Are you okay to walk back to the classroom yourself?”  
“Of course,” Hinata nodded, “See you at practice. Not that I’ll be practicing because, yeah, well, I’ll be watching you guys practice. See you.”  
Hinata turned and rushed off. Sugawara smiled. He turned and headed the opposite way, even if it meant taking a slightly longer way to the classroom. Hinata’s nervousness was cute and Sugawara was smiling to himself as he approached the classroom. 

 

At practice that afternoon, Hinata sat on a chair by the sidelines and watched the team practice. During the break, Sugawara stood drinking water when Daichi approached him.  
“Coach wants to talk with you outside,” Daichi told him.  
“What about?” Sugawara asked, surprised.  
Daichi shrugged, “Who knows. He told me to tell you he’ll meet you around the side of the gymnasium in a moment.”  
Sugawara set down his water bottle and headed out of the gymnasium.

There was no one by the side of the gymnasium. Sugawara frowned, but suspected Ukai would appear after a moment or so. He waited patiently, until he could hear someone approaching. However, he was surprised to see his orange-haired teammate appear and not the Coach.  
“Hinata? What are you doing here?” Sugawara asked.  
“Daichi told me Coach wanted to speak with me,” Hinata frowned “What about you?”  
“He told me the same,” Sugawara sighed, before thinking to himself. Damn Daichi, is he trying to set us up?  
“Shall we go back?” Hinata suggested.  
“No,” Sugawara said quickly, “I mean, wait a minute. I want to ask you something.”  
“Yeah?”  
Sugawara took a deep breath to calm his racing heart. It was now or never.  
“What is it?” Hinata asked.  
“Will you go out with me?” Sugawara rushed, looking down. His cheeks flushed red. He couldn’t believe he just said that.  
“Sure,” Hinata replied. Sugawara looked up, surprised. Though he was relieved, because he didn’t know what he would’ve done if Hinata had said no.  
“I like you, Sugawara,” Hinata said. Sugawara couldn’t believe the younger boy had said something so easily. Sugawara’s cheeks flushed even redder, if that was possible. Not knowing what to say, Sugawara took a step forward and wrapped Hinata in his arms. Hinata put his head against the other’s chest, and Sugawara held him close. He almost didn’t want to let go. Although the air around them was silent, it wasn’t uncomfortable. 

After a moment, Sugawara let go and took a step back. “Shall we go back?”  
Hinata nodded as they walked back in silence. There was no need to exchange words between them, because they knew what the other was thinking. Sugawara looked at the orange-haired boy next to him and smiled, proud to have the other as his boyfriend.


End file.
